Fight or Fall Chapter 1
by The Treblesome One
Summary: The the advantures of Megan Sullivan, Amber Riley and an Autobot named Bumblebee as they try to help the Autobots end the war against the Decepticons.


My shoes clacked against the hardwood library floor, pale peach heels making a loud sound through the silent space. It was getting late so the sunlight had started to filter through the windows, making the dust dance through the air with no order what so ever.

I bit my lip as I scanned the bookshelf with a careful eye, fingers wrapped around the small piece of paper containing the number of the specific book I was searching for. I leaned a leg against the shelf as my brow furrowed,not sure if the book was even there.

"Ah Ha!" I said, pulling a small, yellow bound book off of the shelf. I studied the book curiously, the light blue lettering was very deceptive, considering what the book was about.

"You and those conspiracy books," said the gray haired bespectacled librarian as she pushed a book heavy cart past the aisle I was in.

I smiled, pushing my hair off of my face.

"I just find it interesting," I told her, flipping through the book."A whole side of history that no one knows."

"Well, I wouldn't say no one," she said, dusting off a book."People are often more than what they seem." she looked at me over her glasses with a grin.

"Ain't that the truth." I said, looking down at the book with a near child like curiosity.

"Clean yourself up young lady,you should know better." she laughed and walked away. I looked down and saw that my gray pants, light pink blouse and cream cardigan were slightly covered in a light layer of dust.

I frowned and dusted myself off,then returned to the book I had picked out. Conspiracy theories have often caught my interest,even more so recently. I flipped through the book until I found a picture that caught my interest. It was of several men standing in front of a cargo plane. The picture was in black and white and slightly grainy, making it difficult to make out some of the faces in the picture, but I swore I recognized at least one of them. He was younger, but the smile was unmistakable.

It was my father.

Specifically speaking, it was my father's search team from when he was stationed in the Middle East. I raised an eyebrow at the picture, what was my father's picture doing in a conspiracy book? I scanned the text for key words, something about "A strange metal man" and an "Odd looking cube, described by one of the men as being '...One square foot, silver in color with crudely etched markings in it's surface.'"

Why hadn't I heard about this? I was on good terms with my father, wasn't I? He was still keeping secrets from me, even though we had gotten the biggest one taken care of, he worked with Giant transforming alien robots known as the Autobots, and now, so do I. I have been for the past eight years of my life, ever since I was seventeen. I'm technically a soldier, called to act whenever it's deemed necessary, but I really enjoy intelligence gathering, learning more about the Autobots and their history.

They come from a far off planet known as "Cybertron", which was once prosperous,until the planet fell to the chaos of war, with the mechanical giants siding with either the Decepticons or the Autobots. The Decepticons are the enemies of the Autobots, ruthless, merciless,killing anything that is unfortunate enough to come across their path. They came to our world seeking refugee, and they found it. But the war followed them here, along with the Decepticons.

We joined their fight, willing to help their cause because it sounded much like our own. My father and I have our respective guardians, his, a tough old brute by the name of "Ironhide" who conceals himself in the form of some rarely seen GMC truck known as a Topkick. Bumblebee, the youngest of the Autobot forces, is my guardian, and one of my closest friends. In an odd twist of fate, he became human after a being critically injured by a wound from a sword which managed to puncture him almost entirely, It was either some last ditch effort he made to try and save himself, or some unexplainable force acted in order to keep the poor boy living. He himself has yet to fully grasp how it happened,but he's thankful he's a live because of it.

As a robot, he stood about 16 to 17 feet tall, was yellow in color, and the doors of his Camaro disguise came out like wings, like a bumblebee might look, only bigger. As a human, he stands six foot,two inches,nearly a foot taller than me, has sandy blonde hair, tan skin and the bluest eyes you have ever seen. It's a strange, inhuman color that very few seem to take notice of, but if you know his background, you do.

At first,he kept complaining, saying his skin was too pale,or,his eyes were too blue,the list went on! Finally,my father had enough of this, he snapped at him,telling him to wise up and be grateful for the fact that he was even still alive. That shut him up, and he turned out just fine,becoming quite a fine young man(if I must say) who still lives by the code by which all the Autobots live.

Even though he's my guardian, we became fast friends when we first met. Our friend,Amber Riley,rounds out our little trio,the two bicker often, which can be amusing to a point, but I have found myself walking off to do something else after I'd had enough. They seem to take the hint, unless they're really going at it,but hey, who am I to stop them?

As a guardian,Bumblebee seems genuinely concerned with my safety. but we often find ourselves standing as equals in battle, I'll save his ass, he saves mine, it's mutual.

I looked down at the picture in the book,then smiled.

"You sly little bastard." I said,closing the book as I headed for the check out.

The sun was nearly set as I made my way home from the library, the golden glow fading just below the horizon,bathing the street in an orange and pink glow. I hadn't bothered driving to the library, why bother? It was a nice walk, and besides, Bumblebee had the only car I actual felt like driving,the Camaro, which was purchased by my grandfather as a twenty-fifth birthday present.

What? Did you think a Camaro would magically appear after he became human? And if that, a 1969 one?

I adjusted my bag on my shoulder as I came to a stop at a corner,checking for any on coming traffic. There was none on this silent,early evening section of the street,not a very hot spot on a Tuesday night. The wind kicked up a few leaves as I crossed, mind preoccupied with things I needed to remember in the up coming week, appointments, reports to turn into federal supervisors,otherwise,they'd be hounding my ass,thinking the program had gone rogue or something. I rolled my eyes at the thought of it. Sure, stick the girl who has a degree in political sciences with the job of reporting to the government on the activities of a top secret,government funded organization,what could possibly go wrong with that? I let out a sigh and pushed my bangs off my forehead,eyes closed,I stopped when I reached the other side of the street.

Good god this could get stressful! I love my job,but, there were times when I just wish it wasn't basically a conspiracy itself, ready to burst at the seams! It blew my mind how the whole damn world didn't know the program existed!

I let my bangs fall and started walking,only getting so far before I heard the sound of police sirens behind me. I knew it was no normal police car before I even turned around,what with no one but me on this street. I kept walking,hoping the car would pass me without incident,but that was unlikely, Decepticon's know how to recognize a face or two,and I was one of them. I swallowed and broke into a run,hearing gears and metal shifting as I rounded the nearest corner and pressed up against the wall as best I could. I attempted to steady my breathing so as to not let him hear me and stayed as silent as possible. A few large footsteps rattled the ground as he searched for the vanished human,me,his massive claw like fingers curled into a fist,resting on the ground.

"Any sign of the girl?" A voice crackled through his communication's device.

"Yes,Lord Starscream."spoke the deep voice of Barricade."I have located her."

Me? What the hell did they want me for?

"Excellent, now bring her to me! Do not disappoint me,this time,Barricade." Starscream hissed.

I reached down to remove my shoes as silently as possible.

"Yes,my lord,but,wouldn't it be easier to go after the father?" Barricade questioned.

I stopped. My father? What did the want with him?

"We can get to him through her! Just do as you were told! Every second we waste,the closer they get to finding the Allspark!" Starscream snapped."Just bring me the girl! And hurry!" The communicator shut off.

Barricade let out a frustrated growl,slamming his fist into the side of the building closest to him, the one I happened to be leaning against. Only having one shoe on,I lost my balance and fell to the ground,catching myself with my hands before I slammed against the concrete. My hands were used to this kind of abuse.

"Come out,come out where ever you are!" he hissed,removing his claw from the building,raining debris everywhere. I covered my head,then proceeded to remove my other shoe as quickly as possible. Just as I was about to put it in my bag,a shadow fell over me.

"I found you."

I turned and stared for a second before letting out a rather unnecessary scream as I threw my shoe at his ugly face which sounded like it does when a child beats two pots against each other. I took off running,leaving my bag on the ground behind me.

"Get back here,girl!" the Decepticon snapped,chasing after me. I tripped and did a half cocked somersault onto the street,scrambling to my feet once more as a claw nearly caught me.

"If only I had a gun on me!" I said with gritted teeth to myself.

You may think an ordinary hand gun would work on a creature of such size,but with slight modification, a simple bullet can puncture a Decepticon's armor.

"You're beginning to irritate me!" Barricade growled,taking another swipe at me. He managed to knock me off of my feet that time.

"Ow..." I said, rubbing my bruised tail bone.

"Now I've got you,no one's here to save you, girl!" Barricade laughed. I shot him a look,but he was right, and I couldn't call for back up because my phone was in my bag. All I could do was stall him.

"What do you want me for?" I demanded to know.

"That's none of your business!" he said.

"Of course it is! If I'm going to be taken prisoner,there has to be some reason behind it! Our Constitution states that-"

"Enough! I've had enough out of you you insignificant little insect!" I shut up."You're coming with me and there's no one who can stop me!" he held out a claw and reached for me as I began to scramble backwards. What more could I do? None of the Autobots were currently patrolling this section of town! And the base was on the other side of town! I groaned,I would need a miracle to get out of this one.

"Give up girl!" Barricade said. never, I would never give up, not even if I was captured! "Never!" I shouted. He laughed.

"You've got some gall in you!" his hand nearly had me when it was smacked away with a "CLANG!" of metal against metal. Barricade stumbled back from the blow,shaking his hand at the pain. I heard a sound,as if someone had flicked the knife of a switch blade out. With a flash f orange and silver, a sword came forwards,puncturing the ground in front of me. It was a massive sword that glinted in the last light of the day.

"I will not allow you to lay a hand on her,Barricade." boomed a voice from above me. It sent a shiver down my spine to hear such a powerful voice,a voice that would send a chill through any enemy. And it had,Barricade stopped what he was doing and looked at the figure looming behind me.

"Optimus Prime!" he said in shock.

Now there was a name I had heard before! Optimus Prime was the leader of the Autobots,but the others had heard nothing from him since they had arrived here, it was assumed he was dead and there had been a long debate as to who would take his place. Ratchet, the medical officer, spoke up once day during a rather heated debate.

"For the love of the Allspark!" he shouted."You are all getting to be a pain in the gears!" he let out a sigh."I suggest we wait until we had confirmed proof that Optimus is truly dead, then we can continue this debate." At which point Bumblebee looked at me and said.

"He's not dead." then gave a smirk and returned to cleaning his gun. He likes to keep things in as good a condition as possible,that's why the Camaro always looks brand new.

But, could this really be him? Optimus Prime? The famed Autobot leader.

"Leave here, now." The Prime's voice boomed once again."You have no reason to harm an innocent human being."

"That's not my job! It's Starscream's!" Barricade stuttered.

He removed his sword from the ground and stood up from what I assume was a kneeling position on the ground and took a few steps towards barricade,careful not to step on me. Barricade,frightened by the sight of him, Barricade fled the seen, driving off in his vehicle form. I rose to my feet as Optimus retracted his sword back into his arm, a regular hand appearing in it's place.

"Thank you," I said, going over to where one of my shoes had ended up. He looked over in my direction without a word. I looked at the shoe and frowned,throwing it at Barricade was not my best idea, the heel had broken. That was disappointing,it was one of my favorite pairs of shoes! I sighed,then went to collect my bag,all the while,the Prime's eyes following me.

"Your name wouldn't happen to be...Optimus Prime, would it?" I asked the large, blue and red,flame painted Autobot. He nodded.

"Yes, It is." he said,the battle mask across the lower face of his face sliding away. I managed to break the heel of the shoe.

"Shit!" I cursed,throwing the shoe in the bag.

"and who might you be?" he inquired.

"I'm Megan,Megan Sullivan." I said with a light smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you,Miss Sullivan."

"Likewise,"I said,pulling the bag onto my shoulder. He then inquired as to why Barricade had chosen to attack me. I simply shrugged, I was trying to figure it,too.

"They want my father as well," I told him. That part concerned me most of all, what had either of us done to deserve the Decepticon's after us?

Plus, I was all my dad had, my parents split up years ago, well before the Autobots showed up, I was really little back then,I barely remember my mother,all we have is a few pictures of us as a family and one my father keeps at his bed side of their wedding day. I know he blames himself for their separation,but it's not his fault,things just,didn't work out for them.

I let out a sigh.

"I hate to be rude,sir,but,it's getting late,and it's gonna be quite the walk home with no shoes on." I said,turning to walk down the street.

I heard metal shifting together and out of the corner of my eye spotted a large semi truck,the Prime's disguise. I smiled and laughed a little.

"You know, sometimes I forget about you Autobots, always full of surprises." I walked towards the truck as the passenger's side door opened,allowing me to climb inside.

"You spoke my name,and the name of my race," Optimus said as I set the bag on the seat next to me. I hadn't realized this until he pointed it out,but I had."You must explain to me how you know all this." he said. I tucked a bit of hair behind my ear and twirled it nervously.

"This could take a while..."

Once I was home, it was a few hours later than I had expected it to be, having spent the time explaining the Autobots' existence on Earth to Optimus. I jumped out of the cabin to find Bumblebee waiting on the front porch steps,fiddling with an old tennis ball we threw around for the dog,Sparky, the Border Collie,who, upon hear me return, came bounding up to me with a wagging tail and a lick to the face. I laughed and petted the lovable creature who placed her paw on my knee. Bumblebee let out a whistle and threw the ball for Sparky to fetch. I stood up and greeted the blonde with a smile.

"You're late," he said,trying not to smile.

"I have a good reason," I said, shivering a little,the night air was cold and I was still without shoes. Bumblebee removed the black and yellow jacket hew was wearing,a favorite of his,made of well worn leather that was soft to the touch and draped it over me.

"Thanks..." I said, pulling the jacket close. It smelled like him, a hard to describe scent,but it comforted me none the less. He always knew just what to do to make me feel safe or happy. He looked down at my feet and noticed I wasn't wearing shoes.

"Why?" he asked, pointing to my feet.

"That's...kinda part of the reason I'm late..."I pointed to the truck behind me."And that..." "That?"

I nodded.

"...A truck is the reason you're late?" he raised an eyebrow.

"I..."

"There you are young lady," I heard my father say as he came towards us from the garage. He's a man in his early forties with the same blonde hair as me,and the brown eyes,I get both traits from him. His hair is cut short and he styles it...anyway it decides to lay,really, it reminds me of David Tennant when it gets too long and he looks like Liam Hemsworth when it's the length he likes it at. He never used to let his facial hair grow out,but he let's it get a little scraggly and it comes in red...I always found that strange.

"Where have you been,Megan Lee-Ann?" he asked sternly. I looked between the two expectant men and groaned.

"I got attacked,"I admitted."By Barricade."

"What!" My father said."You weren't hurt,were you!" he asked,grabbing my shoulders firmly.

"Dad! I'm fine!" I said,smacking away his hands."But,if it weren't for him,I probably would have been worse off."

I turned to Optimus who had transformed into his natural state. Both of them were startled by Optimus's appearance.

"Optimus,this is my father,Wes Sullivan and this is..." I stopped and looked at Bumblebee in hesitation.

"This is Bumblebee,he's an Autobot, like you,"

Bumblebee frowned,but I didn't care,he knew better than to hide his identity.

"Optimus Prime?" My father said."Leader of the Autobots, am I right?" He asked. Optimus replied with nod."Welcome to Earth!" he said with a small laugh. My father began to inquire as to how Optimus had come to Earth and how long he'd been there. Bumblebee tapped me on the shoulder and nodded in the direction of the house. Once we had reached the steps,Optimus spoke again.

"Bumblebee,a word." he bellowed. Bumblebee tensed slightly at the sound of his voice. He glanced up at me and I only shrugged.

"He's your boss." I pointed out. He let out a sigh.

"It's probably nothing bad." I heard my father say as he passed ,patting him on the back.

"I sure as hell hope you're right..." Bumblebee muttered. My father grinned,shoving his hands into his pants pockets as he shook his head and climbed the front porch steps.

"Dad,can I ask you a question?" I said,the small yellow book tucked under my arm. I had changed into sweat pants and a baggy hoodie from my alma matar,Georgetown Universtiy in Washington D.C. He looked up from the laptop set on the kitchen counter then moved to the island that contained a breakfast bar on one side and the stove and oven on the other.

"What's up?" he asked. I set the book down and flipped to the picture, pushing it towards him.

"Care to explain this?" I pointed to the picture. He pulled the book towards him with curiosity,not sure of what the picture was. His eyebrows jumped up when he figured it out,squinting as he read the passage.

"I-it's nothing." he said,slamming the book shut,walking over to the cupboard and removing a shot glass and bottle of scotch. He only drank when he was stressed.

"It's not nothing." I said,snatching up the glass.

"Hey!" he snapped,glaring at me."Tell me about that cube thing and I'll give you the glass back!" I wagered.

He frowned.

I folded my arms across my chest.

"Well?"

"Alright,fine! I'll tell you!" he said reluctantly. He sighed and settled himself on the bar stool next to me."It was years ago,when your mother and I were still married,I was deployed to the Middle East when you were about...2 years old. My team and I were on patrol when someone spotted something metallic in the sand. Thinking that some idiot half-assed burying and IED,we went to check it out," he paused."Which in retrospect was probably the most idiotic thing we could have done,but, that aside, it turned out not to be an IED, but a gigantic mechanical man."

"You mean like the Autobots and Decepticons?"

He nodded.

"Exactly like that, only, we freaked out,thinking that we had run into some secret project that the terrorists were working on so we radioed the base,told them our location and,well,as much as we could gather about...whatever the hell it was! While we waited, I was wandering a little ways off from where our vehicle was and spotted another thing in the sand. I dusted it off and discovered it was just a cube, it was..." he picked up the book and found the page.

"'...One square foot, silver in color with crudely etched markings in it's surface.' ...Did I really say that?" he tried to remember,then shook his head.

"They collected the things and brought them back to the states,kept 'em under lock and key until further information could be gathered about them." He sighed and set the book down,rubbing him head.

I held out the glass to him.

He looked at it and took it from me before getting up to get another glass and poured some of the scotch into each glass,one of which he handed to me. I took a small sip,but he downed the glass in one go and son enough,there was more scotch in the glass.

"That wasn't the last of it,though," he continued."Something drew me to that cube, it fascinated me...I don't know what it was." he shook his head again."You remember those stories I used to tell you? About those,'star beasts'?"

"The ones that technically turned out to be true? How could I forget." I replied,downing the last of the small glass but refused another,not being a big drinker.

"That's where I got them from,that big metal man and the cube."He laughed as he stared down at what remained of the scotch in his glass."You asked me to see one, once,so,I took you to see the cube thing,'cause I knew where that was,but not the big,metal man thing,and after that, things went down hill really fast. Your mother said I was filling your head with crazy ideas and that it needed to stop,we both had different sides on that matter, she told me she was leaving and taking you with her." he reached out and held my hand."But I didn't let her," I smiled at him,I was glad he didn't.

"And look where those silly stories got us today." I said. He smiled back.

"That's my girl." he ruffled my bangs then kissed my forehead."Night,Meg,"he said as he walked towards the stairs.

"Night,Dad," I called.

"Don't stay up to late!" I rolled my eyes with a laugh.

"Dad!"

"Sorry!" he said.

I laughed as I turned back to the book,reading over the passage above the picture. My mind thought of the cube,and the "metal man".

Was he an Autobot? A Decepticon? Who was he? And the cube? What of it?

I stared at the word for a moment and suddenly the word "Allspark" jumped to the front of my thoughts. The Autobots use the word as an exclamation,like we do with "Oh my god!","Oh my gosh!" or "Oh for the love of god!" they say "For the love of the Allspark!" and "By the Allspark!" but,what exactly was the Allspark? I never bothered to ask,another relic lost from the past of Cybertron, I sighed,and made note to ask about it later. I tried to recall the names of any Autobots or Decepticons that had been mentioned in the past as I fiddled with with the pages of the book when I heard the door slam and Bumblebee storm inside. He sat down on the couch and rubbed his hands on his face.

"Everything alright?" I asked,going to the couch,hoping over the back of the furniture so I was perched right next to him

."That was the worst ten minutes of my life." he said through his hands.

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad..." He shot me a look with his piercing blue eyes.

"Really? Really? The last time I saw him,I was," he held out an arm about as high as the couch's arm."This high,and not to mention,I was a robot! Not a human!" he pressed his head against his hands.

"And that's a problem...Why?"I asked.

"It's just...I don't want to be treated like a kid any more,I mean,he didn't just now,but now that he knows..."

"So? You're a different person then you were back then,right?" I asked,propping my leg up on the back of the couch.

"I guess..." he grumbled.

"So,give him a chance and he'll give you one! Simple as that!" I patted him on the back."Stop worrying,Bee," I slid down onto the couch next to him."It'll be okay!" I told him.

"Okay,maybe..." he said,leaning back against the couch."Maybe!"

I shook my head.

"You can be such a stick in the mud!"

he laughed.

"Shut up,Meg!"

"You're doing it right now!"

"I am n-!" Sparky,now slightly wet and muddy from the recent rain storms that had plagued the region,jumped up onto the couch,covering us in muddy paw prints.

"Sparky!" Bumblebee snapped.

I cracked up laughing,unable to control myself. Bumblebee raised an eyebrow at me,then began laughing as well.

"See? That's the Bumblebee I know!"


End file.
